Feb. 11, 2013
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by From staff and wires, USA TODAY

by From staff and wires, USA TODAY

A tornado struck the Hattiesburg, Miss., area Sunday, causing major damage and injuring at least 60 people, emergency officials said.

The tornado had maximum wind speeds of up to 145 mph, and was rated an EF-3 on the tornado intensity scale, according to a survey conducted Monday by the National Weather Service.

Jeff Rent of the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency said there were no immediate reports of deaths despite widespread visible damage.

Rent said witnesses and videos made at the scene confirmed a tornado touched down and moved through at least two counties.

In all, there were 15 reports of tornadoes Sunday night in Mississippi and Alabama, according to the Storm Prediction Center. There is no severe weather forecast for Monday anywhere in the country, although ongoing heavy rain could lead to flooding in portions of the Deep South.

More severe weather could lash the region on Tuesday.

The University of Southern Mississippi campus was among the areas hit by the storm, as was a main street that passes by the university.

The university released a statement saying several buildings had been damaged, but no injuries were reported. Campus police declared a state of emergency and asked anyone not on campus to stay away.

Southern Miss senior Paul Gates was at home when he looked out his window and saw the tornado. "It was a little terrifying for a second," he said. Gates said he heard the tornado before he saw it. "It sounded like the proverbial freight train," he said.

In a press conference Sunday night, Joe Paul, Southern Miss vice president for student affairs, discussed the damage the tornado inflicted on campus.

"It appears that the tornado cut a swath just on the very most southerly part of the campus coming right down Hardy Street," he said. "So, the damage is really to our front door."

The Ogletree Alumni House on campus was severely damaged.

The American Red Cross reported Sunday night that more than 50 families whose homes were affected by the storm were seeking shelter.

The Hattiesburg American reported that power lines and debris were a hazard along Old Highway 11.

According to Lamar County Schools Superintendent Ben Burnett, Oak Grove High School suffered structural damage.

"Within seconds, everything changed," Sara Lawrence of Hattiesburg told CNN. "I didn't feel like there was much notice. I heard the sirens and everything looked OK outside. ...Then, next thing I know, all the lights went out, and it got dark outside."

Greg Flynn of the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency said officials estimate several hundred homes were damaged in Forrest County.

Just outside Columbia, Miss., Marion County Emergency Director Aaron Greer said there were injuries in the community of Pickwick.

One woman narrowly avoided being crushed when the roof of a church fell on the pickup truck she had been driving just moments earlier.

Charlene Barefoot, of nearby Ellisville, Miss., had been trying to get off U.S. 49 and find a quicker route away from the storm, according to her brother, Jerry Lee.

She wound up on Hardy Street, just blocks from the University of Southern Mississippi campus, and was greeted with a terrifying scene. Airborne debris flew overhead, and when a soldier abandoned the car in front of her, she did the same, taking cover in a nearby culvert.

When she looked back, her truck had been flattened.

"It ain't every day a church falls on you," Lee said.

Contributing: William Welch, Cara Richardson, Doyle Rice, the Hattiesburg American, the Clarion-Ledger, and the Associated Press